A Twist on the Old Favorite Character

[Ian]

Hello, cousins!

I thought I'd put a twist on the old Favorite Character thread.

So how about you name which actors/actresses, in your opinion, had the best acting talent (you don't need to put them in order, just the top five), and then name your favorite characterization that each particular actor/actress performed with a reason why.

I'll go first, of course:

1. Humbert Allen Astredo as Nicholas Blair: Personally, Nicholas Blair is one of the best characters on the show. He first appears so suave and debonair, but you can quickly tell that his dark side is far too sinister to keep that facade up for long (how he keeps it up as long as he does I'll never know XD).

2. Louis Edmonds as Joshua Collins: I love LE in this role since he performs it so admirably especially when the majority of his other roles (Roger (RT and PT), Edward, Brutus, etc) are so cold-hearted and evil (in the role of Brutus, of course). Just...pure genius as this role.

3. Jerry Lacy as Gregory Trask: JL does a great job portraying inherent evil with the facade of goodness. By facade, I don't mean his outward personality, since that is just as poisonous as he is on the inside. Just the fact that he portrays himself as a "Man of God," yet by doing so many malicious acts....It's awesome, pure and simple.

4. Lara Parker as Angelique Bouchard/DuVal/Dubois/Miranda DuVal: I cannot make this list without paying homage to LP's classic "looks." The feelings she emotes when she contorts her face...Well, I mainly LOVE the smirk of gumption and superiority she usually has set on, but she does a good job portraying fear at the same time (especially in 1968).

5. Marie Wallace as Jenny Collins: You know...MW did an excellent job portraying "insane" with just about every single one of her roles, but this one by far takes the cake. Crazy was brought to a new level with Jenny. I don't think I really need to explain any more if you've seen Jenny in action. XD

So how about the rest of you?

[Gothick]

It's hard to limit myself to five, but I'll give it a shot:

(1)  Grayson Hall as Hoffman, the housekeeper in 1970 Parallel Time.  An amazingly subtle and well-crafted characterization, and very different from the rest of her work on DS.

(2)  Thayer David as Count Petofi.  Bravura acting at its most unforgettable.  I loved the subtlety with which Thayer suggested the Count's vulnerability beneath the mantle of arrogant superiority with which he enveloped himself.

(3)  Lara Parker as Cassandra Collins.  Too bad Tammy Wynette didn't record a theme song for Mrs Roger Collins: B-I-T-C-H!

(4)  Humbert Allen Astredo as Nicholas Blair.  Proving that evil is so much more fascinating to watch than good.

(5)  Nancy Barrett as Charity Trask possessed by the spirit of Pansy Faye.  Just ... superb.

There are MANY others but before I have time to think of them, I give honorary mention to Joan Bennett's 1966-67 work as Liz, and Jonathan Frid's extraordinary performance as Barnabas--both iconic characterizations that were THE faces of Dark Shadows at the time and in our memories for many, many years.

G.

[Ian]

It's hard to limit myself to five, but I'll give it a shot:

(1)  Grayson Hall as Hoffman, the housekeeper in 1970 Parallel Time.  An amazingly subtle and well-crafted characterization, and very different from the rest of her work on DS.

Interesting...I never saw too much of 1970PT, so I can't really agree or disagree with that one. Oh, how I wish for the DVD's...*sigh*

(2)  Thayer David as Count Petofi.  Bravura acting at its most unforgettable.  I loved the subtlety with which Thayer suggested the Count's vulnerability beneath the mantle of arrogant superiority with which he enveloped himself.

Again, I didn't see too much of this. When I was able to catch it on Sci-Fi, I saw mainly the beginning of 1897, a little into when Quentin was cursed, and the very end, when Barnabas traveled back to 1796.

(3)  Lara Parker as Cassandra Collins.  Too bad Tammy Wynette didn't record a theme song for Mrs Roger Collins: B-I-T-C-H!

Ah...her famous smirks come into play in that role. I love it.

(4)  Humbert Allen Astredo as Nicholas Blair.  Proving that evil is so much more fascinating to watch than good.

W00t! We agree on one! XD

(5)  Nancy Barrett as Charity Trask possessed by the spirit of Pansy Faye.  Just ... superb.

I wish I could have seen more of this one...

Oh, and I also found it difficult to limit myself to five, but I had to get to bed, so I had to draw the line somewhere.

[AndreDuPres]

Wow, neat thread!

1. Nancy Barrett as Melanie Collins.  *SO* totally different from (yet strangely alike) her other roles.  I was only able to watch the first twenty or so episdoes of 1841PT before the Sci-Fi Channel so evilly got rid of DS, so I didn't get to see the whole effect, but what I saw was amazing with Melanie--she was so saccharinely sweet, devoted, and virtuous as well as brutally insane--such a wonderful schizophrenic character!

2. David Selby as "Count Petofi."  Many people criticise both David Selby and Thayer David for not acting as the other would do when this plot occurred, but I think they both (Selby, especially) did a fantastic job--Selby is so sinister and cruel, much more so than in early 1897 Quentin.  I think my favourite scene of this characterisation is the one when he's threatening Angelique, saying something along the lines of "I give you my name--you give me your obedience."

3. Christopher Pennock as Gabriel Collins (RT).  Quite simply his best character on the show.  Very real, very "human."  His interactions with Daniel, his jealousy of Quentin, his "rampage" near the end...all of it's great.

4. Marie Wallace as vampire Megan.  This really shows her versatility as an actor--she swiches from the obsessive, overly zealous Megan Todd who had strong feelings and opinions about everything (Jeb in particular) to the lifeless, emotionless nihilist who does not even want to become human again.

5. Joel Crothers as Nathan Forbes.  Definitely his best role.  I love how his character shifts from "good" to "bad" once Barnabas "dies" and the family falls apart.  Crothers did a fine job with anger, greed, and fear.  His later scenes with Daniel and Millicent were particularly chilling.

[PennyDreadful]

1.) Jonathan Frid as Barnabas -  An excellent, iconic performance from a great actor.  Amazing.

2.) Lara Parker as Angelique - Lara Parker was chilling and wonderful as Angelique - particularly in 1795.

3.) Thayer David as Count Petofi - I second what was said earlier in this post about Thayer's Petofi.  What a grand character actor Thayer David was.  He added so much to the series.

4.) David Henesy as David Collins - This kid could act.  David could play both disturbing (in the early episodes) and sympathetic.  When he was terrified, I felt terrified right along with him.  DS wouldn't have been the same without David.

5.) Nancy Barrett as Pansy Faye - Nancy Barrett was fantastic in this role.  She added both fun and tragic nuances to this character.  Nancy is a fantastic actor.

 Wow, it is tough to pick only five!  I had six or seven more actors in mind.  I can just hear Lois Edmonds as Roger in the back of my mind bellowing.."You left me off the list?!  Preposterous!!!"

[Patti Feinberg]

David Henesy as Count Petofi. For a kid, DH really had good innuendo and was not over the edge.

Nancy Barrett as Carolyn Stoddard Hawkes in 1995! Wow!!

David Selby as Quentin in 1995. The guilt, the hand-wringing!

Oh, I'm forgetting Bruno in 1970 PT.

And....also PT...Alexis!! I think LP really played 2 different characters very well.

Patti

[michael c]

this is a great thread.

i had to give this alot of thought and found myself surprised by some of my picks.keep in mind i haven't seen the whole show so some of the characters these actors played i haven't seen yet.

1.joan bennett as elizabeth,naomi and judith collins.icy and secretive as early liz i liked her when she developed a bit more complexity during the laura collins story.she was amazing during the jason mcquire storyline when she revealed strength and also great sadness and vulnerability(although liz really irritated me during the buried alive storyline).besides barnabas naomi brought the most pathos to the 1795 storyline and again brought a touching sadness to the role.i just started to watch 1897 but i'm greatly enjoying her portrayal of judith.she's feisty and has great chemistry with david selby.

2.grayson hall as dr.julia hoffman and countess natalie dupres.grayson can bring a great hautuer to a character as well as sense of drive and ambition.but there can also be a sense of lonliness,resign and,of course,unrequited love.
as magda the jury is till out.to tell you the truth i find her to be sort of cartoonish and not very subtle.

3.lara parker as angelique and cassandra collins.i really wanted not to like her at first but she totally grew on me.
i loved cassandra but ultimately feel as if her storyline was taken away from her by adam and nicholas.i wanted more of her and less of those two.

4.nancy barrett as carolyn stoddard.great early on as snotty and petulant.she also showed strength and resolve when her family(especially her mother)needed her.i loved her rebelliousness when liz was with jason and also her strange,zombie-like attitude when she was under barnabas' control.she was a great "flawed" but ultimatly decent character.

5.marie wallace as eve and jenny collins.her eve was the only part of the detestable adam plot that i enjoyed.
i'm watching the jenny storyline now and she really takes it to new heights of insanity.completely nuts but there is something there you can care about.she's not a throw-away psycho killer.great performance!

i also really like kathryn leigh scott as early maggie evans.less so once she replaces vicki as collinwood governess.she loses alot of her "maggieness".i loved josette but don't think the character was as fleshed-out as she could have been.rachel drummond isn't that interesting to me.

ironically my favorite character from the show(as if you guys don't know)is alexandra moltke as vicki but she's actually not what i'd consider to be one of the show's best actors.she doesn't have a huge amount of range and can turn in a performance this side of bland.but she projects extreme sweetness,naivety and vulnerability.that combined with extrordinairy beauty was a winning combination for me.

honorable mention also needs to be given to clarice blackburn as mrs.johnson and abigail collins and to diana millay as laura collins.

[Raineypark]

Thayer David as Ben:  I've always thought it must be more difficult to portray a pathetic character than a proud one.  Ben was, by turns, terrified, desperate, and loyal.....and required a greater range than either Petofi or the Professor.

John Karlen and Nancy Barrett, as William and Carolyn Loomis:  This pairing produced, in my opinion, the most vivid and complex marital relationship on the show.  They illustrated brilliantly that love and hate can be equally powerful forces in a tormented marriage.  I think Barrett's portrayal of grief is one of the finest performances in the entire series.

Jerry Lacy as Gregory Trask:  An actor has to be pretty brave, and very confident in his talent, to create so despicable a character.  He takes the performance completely over the top....but Trask never becomes a buffoon.  His salacious mannerisms, combined with his religious  fanatacism make him, in my opinion, the single most evil character on DS.

John Karlen as Willie Loomis: At the risk of repeating myself (and when you've been on this forum as long as I have,  it's inevitable,  )  Willie's role in Dark Shadows is to be the illustration of redemption.  I can't think of another character who undergoes such a profound transformation as Willie does, from his initial hoodlum punk, to the concience of Barnabas Collins.    He suffers terribly for his sins, and redeems himself in his desperate attempts to protect Maggie Evans, among others.  When Barnabas plots to save his own hide at the expense of someone else, Willie is there, pleading for another, more merciful way, often at the risk of his own pain.  The transformation was fascinating to watch, because Karlen was so willing to be utterly vulnerable. 

[stefan]

I still keep going back to Jonathan Frid as the best in his role. I bought some 1895 CDs and caught my first glimpse of Quentin, Pansy, Judith, Kitty (great KLS), the infamous Count Petrofi, and I really, really missed JF (he wasn't on all that much).

1) so, it's still Jonathan Frid in my book. No-one can portray guilt, remorse, sadness, depth of feeling and longing in those hurt brown eyes like 'da man.

2) Thayer David as "that convict" Ben Stokes.

3) Louis Edmonds still as Joshua Collins

4) Joan Bennett as Naomi Collins but was suprised by the sophistication and dry brittleness of Judith Trask or Collins? Very good performance.

5) Dennis Patrick as Jason McGuire

[Gerard]

Like Rainey, I think John Karlen and Nancy Barrett as the Tennessee-Williamsesque Will and Carolyn Loomis is one of the most intricate and firey coupling on DS.  I couldn't get enough of seeing them on the screen, whether together or separately.  It's a shame that both JK and NB had to be absent for most of the 1970PT storyline in order to film HoDS.  They were utterly magnificent in their roles and performances.

Gerard

[Barnabas'sBride]

01) Jonathan Frid - Since he is my original reason for loving the show as much as I do, it only makes sense that he's on my list. It takes a great actor to make me feel so much for a character. Barnabas is my first reason for loving DS. I wouldn't have loved him as much if Frid didn't portray him so well.

02) Nancy Barrett - The more I see of her, the more I feel she was possibly the best actress on the show. She played such a variety of characters and she made them all work fantastically. No matter the character, she always comes off so natural, like she isn't acting at all.  She's impressive to watch, IMO. Favorite role: Carolyn Stoddard or Pansy Faye.

03) John Karlen - Two words, a first and last name: Willie Loomis. Karlen was perfect with showing Willie's emotions -fear, confusion, helplessness.... He was an actor I wish had been on the series more.

I olny have two more spaces on my list, and around four or five actors/actresses left in my mind, I'll have to think about the last two before I add them. Good topic!

[stefan]

John Karlen - Two words, a first and last name: Willie Loomis. Karlen was perfect with showing Willie's emotions -fear, confusion, helplessness.... He was an actor I wish had been on the series more.

I concur John Karlen as Willie Loomis. Actually, there were so many great actors one hates to not mention them ... I always like anything Clarice Blackburn does. KLS was excellent as the high-strung and elegant Kitty (Josette reincarnation) - nice to see her in an adult role. David Ford is another fav of mine as Sam Evans, the original Burke Devlin was excellent and the list goes on and on...

[michael c]

i just realized that all my choices were actresses.

obviously jonathan frid,john karlen,david selby,louis edmonds,thayer david and dennis patrick are tops as well.

early actors like mitch ryan,david ford and joel crothers brought alot to the table too.sad,once barnabas and later quentin take over there is little room left for this type of male character.

[Patti Feinberg]

early actors like mitch ryan,david ford and joel crothers brought alot to the table too.sad,once barnabas and later quentin take over there is little room left for this type of male character.

mscbryk...I hadn't ever thought of this. Too true, especially also with Louis Edmonds' characters (early Roger plus Joshua). He too seemed to just be on the sidelines, with wonderful Ms. Bennett.

Patti

[michael c]

patti,

early on you have strong male characters like burke devlin,dr.woodard,jason mcquire,bill malloy,sam evans and joe haskell.but after the barnabas character takes off the real human male characters are either killed-off or relegated to the sidelines.then you get characters like adam,nicholas,tom/chris jennings,quentin and jeb hawkes.

while there are always plenty of s.y.t's the male human being becomes something of an endangered species in collinsport.